David H. takes a look at some desktop
organizational tools to help with your productivity
A clean working desktop is said to be an
especially effective one. The same can be said for the other kind of desktop,
the one on your PC. Having random icons scattered across your screen or
arranged from the top-left corner down may very well be traditional, but those
who are in the know with regards to these types of things state that this is
not the way to work.
A
clean working desktop is said to be an especially effective one. The same can
be said for the other kind of desktop, the one on your PC.
Apparently, what’s needed is a more
efficient way of grouping common icons and programs together; the experts that
make these claims have gone on to prove just how much more efficient a tidy and
more organized desktop is by several percent over an untidy one. They claim
your life will be more fulfilled, you’ll earn more, you’ll be more popular and
so on. Mind you, most of these experts are of the fend shui variety and have
the tendency of being a little too dramatic when making these claims, but there
is an element of truth in their grandiose statements.
Having an easy-to-view and nicely organized
desktop will naturally cut down on time spent trying to find files, folder and
programs. There’ll be less to distract you from starting work or during work,
and in the event that you’re unable to get to your computer, it could make
things easier for someone to carry on with your work or find something for you.
Needless to say there are loads of excuses to have a tidy desktop, so we’ve put
together a collection of third-party programs that we think will help you
organize your desktop better, to make it look cleaner and less cluttered and to
keep it looking snappy and less distracting.
Fences
Create
Fences to keep those pesky icons from cluttering up your desktop
Fences is a program from Stardock, which is
currently doing some amazing things to make Windows 8 look and feel a little
better for everyone who uses it. What it does is allow you to organize your
desktop icons into categories or defined regions, where you can group similar
programs together in a shaded area. From there, you can then unclutter your
desktop and move the groups around the desktop until you have a more organized
look and feel, and the desktop becomes an easier place to navigate.
You can download Fences to try it for a
limited period (30 days) or alternatively you can go ahead and spend the $9.99
for the full version. Either way, head to goo.gl/9uclv and follow the on-screen
instructions.
Once downloaded and installed, Fences will
offer to automatically organize your desktop for you with a selection of
pre-made areas, such as Documents, Quick Links, etc., or you can simply decide
to create and draw your own Fences.
Fences will install itself into the
Appearance and Personalization section of the Windows Control Panel and from
within here you can do all sorts of wonderful things like ‘Create New Fence’,
‘Rename a Fence’, ‘Adjust a Fence’, and customize with colors, labels and
shades. You can instantly hide and show your desktop with a quick double-click,
or swipe between multiple screens of icons like you would on a smartphone. The
list goes on, but the best thing about Fences is that it’s easy to use.
Stardock has gone to a lot of trouble making sure that its software is not only
functional but also extremely fluid and easy enough for even the most
inexperienced of users to get to grips with.
The
end effect can be quite impressive
Creating a Fence is as easy as drawing a
rectangle on your desktop, then deciding if it’s going to be a Fence that
contains grouped desktop icons, or a Folder Portal, which will allow you to
access any folder conveniently. Once the Fence is created, name it, then drag
the relevant icons into the shaded area. If you want to move the entire fenced
group, click and hold the top of the Fence and drag it around your desktop
until you’ve it placed wherever you want it.
If you decide to remove a Fence, then click
on the ‘X’ in the top-right corner of the offending group and select either
‘Delete Fence’, which will delete the Fence and replace the icons back on the
desktop, or ‘Delete Fence and Files’, which will remove the Fence and
everything within. Obviously you’ll want to take some care removing Fences, so
make you sure you have any backups before going ahead and start deleting.
Fences is pretty good and used by many
Stardock has a long history of creating decent software, so if you’re willing
to commit to the paltry payment, then you can rest assured that you’re getting
good value for your money. The memory used is minimal (of course, it depends on
the number of Fences and the styles you use to fill each Fence), so unlike
other programs that ‘decorate’ the desktop, Fences won’t leave your system
strangled for resources.
